Facts and information about the New York Giants

• Giants Quarterback Eli Manning’s older brother Peyton Manning and father Archie Manning both played quarterback in the NFL.
• Bill Parcells is the only person to have coached both of the NFL’s New York franchises, the Giants and the Jets.
• Phil Simms’ son Chris also played Quarterback in the NFL.
• Neither the New York Giants or the New York Jets play games in New York, they play in New Jersey.
• The New York Giants baseball team moved to San Francisco in 1957, but the football team still uses The New York Football Giants as its official corporate name.
• The Giants were one of five teams, and the only one still in existence, to join the NFL in 1925.
• The New York Giants won their first game ever, beating New Britain 26-0. The Giants went on to post a record of 8-4 in their first season.
• In 1930, at a time when many still held college football as far superior to professional, the Giants hosted a Notre Dame team that included some Notre Dame greats from the previous year’s championship team. The Giants won the game (whose proceeds went to charity), holding Notre Dame scoreless on what many consider the day professional football gained its legitimacy.
• Following a disappointing 1928 season, Giants owner Tim Mara bought the complete Detroit Wolverines roster and merged the two teams under the Giants name.
• In the 14 years from 1933-1946, the New York Giants qualified to play for the NFL Championship an amazing eight times, winning it all twice.
• The Head Coach of the 1956 New York Giants was Jim Lee Howell. His assistant coaches were fairly talented in their own right, Vince Lombardi was in charge of the offense and Tom Landry the defense.
• Bill Parcells is the only coach to have coached as an away team in his own home stadium for two different teams.  He did this for the New York Giants when they played away against the New York Jets, and then he did it again as the coach of the Jets when they played away against the Giants.
• In the six years from 1958-1963, the Giants played for the championship of the NFL five times, never winning the big game.
• During the 1969 preseason, the Giants lost their first-ever game with the New York Jets (then a member of the AFL). After the loss, Giants owner Wellington Mara fired coach Allie Sherman.
• During the 1977 season, the New York Giants had three rookie Quarterbacks on their roster at the same time.
• Before moving into Giants Stadium in The Meadowlands in 1976, the Giants played the 1973-1974 seasons in the Yale Bowl in Connecticut and the 1975 season in Shea Stadium.
• In 1981, Lawrence Taylor won both the Defensive Rookie Of The Year Award and the Defensive Player Of The Year Award.
• In the 1986 post season, including their playoff games against the 49ers and the Redskins, and their Super Bowl win against the Broncos, the Giants outscored their opponents 105-23.
• In Super Bowl XXI against the Broncos, Phil Simms completed an amazing 22 of 25 passes and was named Super Bowl MVP.
• The Giants were eliminated from the playoffs by the Los Angeles Rams following the 1989 season when Flipper Anderson caught a 47 yard touchdown pass in overtime.
• Former Center, and fan favorite, Bart Oates got his start in professional football with the Philadelphia Stars of the USFL.
• The first New York Giant to ever have their jersey retired was Ray Flaherty (#1). Flaherty was not only the first Giant to have his jersey retired, but the first player to have his jersey retired by any professional sports team.
• The first Giants coach to win two championships was legendary coach Steve Owen.
• From 1925 through 1968, the first eight Head Coaches the Giants had all had career win-loss records with the Giants that were over .500. Since 1968, only two Head Coaches have had win-loss records over .500 with the Giants; Bill Parcells and Jim Fassel.
• Longtime New York Giants Punter Sean Landeta was the last active NFL player to have played in the 1980s USFL.
• The New York Giants were the first team to win a regular season football game played outside the United States when they beat the Miami Dolphins 13-10 in London, England in 2007.
• Giants’ kicker Bjorn Nitmo was the first Swedish born player to play in the NFL.
• Quarterback Y.A. Tittle was the first quarterback to post back-to-back 30+ touchdown seasons.
• In his first six seasons in the NFL (with the Cardinals), running back Ottis Anderson fumbled the ball 48 times. In his final six years (with the Giants), he fumbled the ball just three times.
• The 2007 Giants became only the second team to win three consecutive road playoff games and then win the Super Bowl, the first was the 2005 Steelers.
• Former coach Bill Parcells is the first (and as of 2007 only) coach to take four different NFL teams to the playoffs (Giants, Patriots, Jets, and Cowboys).
• Eli Manning scored the first rushing touchdown in a regular season game played outside of the United States in the Giants win over the Miami Dolphins in London, England in 2007.
• Though coming from a largely unknown college (Morehead State), Giants quarterback Phil Simms was still (shockingly to some) taken with the seventh pick in the first round of the NFL Draft.
• Both Giants running back Tiki Barber and his twin brother Buccaneers cornerback Ronde Barber won academic scholarships to attend the University of Virginia.
• In 1989, Dave Meggett led the league in punt return yards as a rookie.
• With his Super Bowl MVP Award he won as part of the 2007 New York Giants, Eli Manning joined his older brother Peyton as the only pair of brothers to win the award. They are also the only brothers to start in or win Super Bowls as quarterbacks.
• Before the 1979 NFL Draft, Phil Simms had a workout with new 49ers coach Bill Walsh who then intended to take him in the draft. The Giants drafted Simms instead and the 49ers had to go with their backup plan: Joe Montana.
• Phil Simms came in second in rookie-of-the-year balloting in 1979, the winner was St. Louis Cardinals running back and future teammate Ottis Anderson.
• In former Giants running back Dave Meggett’s entire career he completed four passes. All of them went for touchdowns.
• Three players played for coach Bill Parcells on the New York Giants, and went on to play for him with two other NFL franchises; Dave Meggett, Jumbo Elliott, and Pepper Johnson.
• In the 1950’s the New York Giants had two of the better assistant coaches in the league. Future Dallas Cowboys head coach Tom Landry was the defensive coordinator and the offensive coordinator was future Green Bay Packers head coach Vince Lombardi.
• In a 1985 contest against the Cincinnati Bengals, Phil Simms passed for 515 yards. At the time this was the 5th most passing yards ever in a game in the NFL.
• In Super Bowl XXI against the Denver Broncos, Giants quarterback Phil Simms completed 22 of 25 passes, setting a record for completion percentage in the Super Bowl. Amazingly, of the three incomplete passes, two of them were drops made by his receivers.
• Longtime Dallas Cowboy head coach Tom Landry played defensive back for the New York Giants in the early 1950’s. He finished his career with an amazing 32 interceptions in 80 games played.
• The first person to use the phrase “I’m going to Disneyland” after winning the Super Bowl was Giants quarterback Phil Simms after beating the Broncos in Super Bowl XXI. If the Giants would’ve lost, the famous line would have been said by John Elway.
• Jeff Hostetler quarterbacked the New York Giants to a victory over the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXV. Hostetler had been the backup quarterback all season until Phil Simms broke his foot in week 14, ironically, in a game against those same Buffalo Bills.
• In a 2001 Sports Illustrated article titled “The Most Overrated and Underrated”, the sporting magazine named Phil Simms the Most Underrated Quarterback in NFL History.
• Longtime Giants quarterback Phil Simms’ son Chris is also an NFL quarterback.